Wisconsin bill to outlaw exotic pets

State is only one of five that
allows such animals as pets

Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

But it’s not something Wisconsin police might have to consider in the future under a bill getting a hearing in Madison this week.

State senator Van Wanggaard’s bill would outlaw exotic pets like big cats, apes and alligators. 

He says making it illegal to keep those animals in the state would mean fewer surprises for police.

Surprises like in the case where, “all of a sudden officers step into a situation where there’s a gorilla or a tiger or something such as that,” Wanggaard said, “that’s been kept in a personal, residential setting where they’re really not designed to be. These are wild animals not domesticated animals.”

Wisconsin is one of only five states in which such animals can be kept as pets.